Las Vegas Stratosphere

Las Vegas Travel Blog

The StratosphereTower at the hotel of the same name on "the Strip" is the largest self standing structure in the United States and the 9th largest tower in the world. It looks huge from the street and when travelling around Las Vegas. It is only when you are up it you realise quite how HUGE it is. It cost around $150 million to build and has the highest Starbucks in the world on the 108th or so level and the most scary rides ever. I suspect they are so scary that few people ride them! They used to have a roller coaster on the top but that closed in Dec 2005 to make way for the rides below. You can watch the videos - they alone will terrify you - on my myspace blog

The Stratosphere Insanity Ride - where you hang out over the side of the tower and spin at 40 miles per hour. You have to be mad to do this. The people brave enough to do it looked somewhat ill on the ride

The Stratosphere X-Scream Ride - this one shoots you over the end of the tower and you bob back and forth held in your seat by a rather flimsy looking bar (that alone makes you feel terrified)

The Stratosphere Big Shot Ride - this one shoots you high up the tower and then you shoot up and down for a while.....silly me videoed this the wrong way around so looks like you shoot sideways and not up